Showdown at the Bell Tree Resort
by Swagnarok
Summary: The main cast embark on a trip to a stunning island getaway for the summer. Meanwhile, the Magician of the Moonlight sets his sights on a bright red gem; once again, though, Jirokichi Suzuki plots and schemes to stop the Kid in his tracks. Love, deception, and old forgotten memories converge at the Bell Tree Resort. Episodes 956-958.
1. Chapter 1

The clock on the wall ticked slowly, monotonously. The children were all full of energy, but every student there was confined to a desk, forbidden to talk or move around. It was like a fricking prison.

Their metaphorical jailer and captor, then, was Sumiko Kobayashi, droning on about something that probably wasn't important.

"...To sum it up, I was disappointed by the generally poor performance on the final exam," she said. "But regardless, most of you did make a passing grade in this class."

Most of the kids simply heard "bla bla bla bla bla bla bla".

But then this next part they all heard:

"And with that, class is dismissed. I wish you all a good summer break."

As soon as she said "summer break", every kid practically leaped out of his or her seat and started cheering wildly. They exited the classroom in a highly rambunctious and disorderly manner, practically trampling over each other to get through the door.

"It's like shouting 'Fire' in a crowded theatre," Kobayashi murmured, sighing.

 **Scene Transition**

All of the Detective Boys, after having quickly run home to grab their bags, gathered outside the Professor's house.

As they were arriving, Dr. Agasa was stuffing bins in the back of the...

"Van?" Ayumi said.

"Hey, Professor, aren't we going in your old yellow car?" Genta asked.

"There's not enough room in the Beetle," Dr. Agasa said. "Too many passengers, even if everyone shared seatbelts."

"Too many people," Nancy repeated. "Wait, does that mean...?"

"Yeah, we're coming too, kid."

Sonoko and Masumi had just shown up, laden with bags. Both looked dressed for the beach.

"You do realize we're not getting there for a whole day, right?" Conan said.

"Well, there might be some hot guys on the boat ride," Sonoko said, grinning.

"So this is everyone, right?" Haibara asked.

"No," Conan said. "That person should be coming too."

"That...person?" Haibara said. "Wait, surely you don't mean...!"

The car pulled up at that moment. Jodie Starling and Shiro Ayamori stepped out.

Haibara tensed up; it was too late to change her mind about the trip, and doing so would certainly look suspicious, but at the same time she REALLY did not want to spend the next week with one of the men in black, even if he was but a child now.

She glared at Conan, who no doubt invited him to come, she thought, considering how incredibly and uncharacteristically stupid he was when it came to that person.

Conan suddenly started hopping up and down like a bunny rabbit. "I gotta pee! I really, really, really gotta pee!"

He looked at Haibara, half expecting her to start jumping up and down too.

Instead, she just sighed. "I need to go use the toilet too, if you don't mind."

 **Scene Transition**

"You invited him, didn't you?" she said, cutting straight to the point, a very unhappy look on her face.

"What? No!" Conan denied. "It was Mitsuhiko who invited him, if I remember right. But irrespective of whose fault this is, that person doesn't know squat. As Ryusuke Higo he's had plenty of opportunities to see your face, and yet you're still alive today."

"Still, I don't think I can forget that twisted game he played during that car ride before," Haibara said.

"That's all the more reason," Conan said. "In the end we passed their test. The most they've got is suspicions, and the Organization's too careful to leave body trails based on mere hunches. And don't forget, my life's on the line too, you know."

"Then why the h**l did you have him enrolled at Teitan Elementary?!" Haibara fumed. "Why not in the far corner of Hokkaido somewhere?!"

"That's another conversation for another day," Conan said. "But regardless, what matters now is how we react to the situation at hand, which is why I wanted to talk to you."

"I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess you've got a plan?" Haibara said.

Conan grinned. "Yeah. It should work. No, I'm sure of it."

 **Scene Transition**

Conan and Haibara came back outside, and the rest of the van's passengers went to take a last-minute bathroom pit-stop as well.

"You're sure you've got everything you need?" Jodie asked Shiro.

"Yes, Auntie Jodie," Shiro said in a childish voice.

"Alright then," Jodie said, smiling warmly. "Just make sure that you don't..."

"...cause any trouble," she finished, her warm smile having been replaced by a venomous, contemptuous hate-filled glare. "We have ways of making naughty little boys disappear...forever. You'd best remember that, whatever you do or think about doing."

Shiro, being trapped in a tiny body the way he was, found himself feeling very intimidated at this moment, even downright frightened. "Y-yes, I'll be good. You don't have to worry about me."

Mitsuhiko, Ayumi, and Genta came back outside and were coming within a few feet of them.

Jodie re-applied her sickeningly nice persona. "Have a wonderful trip, sweetie."

She hugged him tightly, got into her car, and drove off.

Soon after, everyone had gone to the bathroom, the van was fully loaded, and they began the long trip to a tropical paradise.

 **Opening**

(Cup of Trembling by B'z)

(Each fresh breath of life is a fresh chance to start anew! A quiet, laid back summer vacation in the tropics; the thrill of a jewel heist! Mix the two together and you get an explosive combination! Perceiving the one and only truth! With the body of a child but the mind of an adult, my name is...DETECTIVE CONAN!)

Above all, I'm afraid of you seeing me like this

The youthful vigor sapped from my bones

Too afraid to proceed, too afraid to turn back

A wretch, recoiling from my own shadow

Wallowing in self-pity like a pig wallowing in its crap

I can't check my phone, lest you might try to call

I can't live at home, lest you might try to visit

All I have left is the clothes on my back and

That dreaded bottle, whose contents I dare not drink

Oh I'm going nowhere, a pinwheel spinning in circles

This Cup of Trembling I now raise to my lips and swallow

So I may face the demons haunting my restless nights

I can't show my face to you until I can call myself a man

Until I've walked a full moon carrying my cross

 **Showdown at the Bell Tree Resort! Part One!**

With every person carrying a bag or bin or two, they stepped through the revolving door into the lobby of the Bell Tree Resort, a hotel, golf course, and beachfront complex owned and managed by the Suzuki Corporation.

They were immediately bombarded with the coolness of the indoor environment. The air conditioner had been working overtime, clearly. It was much cooler than the ferry which they spent a solid 24 hours cooped up in to get to this remote island in the Ogasawara (AKA Bonin) archipelago.

The Bell Tree Resort was located on Tengai-jima (lit. "dome island"), which had a permanent population of only 85 people but hosted thousands of Japanese mainland tourists every year, as well as a decent number of foreigners.

(Author's Note: Tengai-jima is a fictional location, as is the aforementioned Bell Tree Resort.)

They put down their bags and sat in the lobby waiting area while the Professor talked to the concierge at the front desk.

"I wonder if there are any souvenir shops here," Masumi said.

"Yeah, there's one on the resort grounds," Sonoko said. "But it's just got cheesy mugs and t-shirts and key chains and stuff like that. And everything's crazy overpriced."

"Huh? Sonoko-neechan, you've been here before?" Conan asked.

"Yeah," Sonoko said. "This is my fifth trip, actually. I mean, I'm kind of the owners' daughter, in case you didn't know."

Dr. Agasa returned. "Alright, I got the room key. Ours is Room 413."

There was an awkward pause.

"W-what?" Dr. Agasa said. "Why are you all looking at me like that?"

"Professor, you need to ask for a different room!" Nancy said.

"Yeah, that's like double unlucky, isn't it?" Sonoko said. "If we stay in that room, there's bound to be another murder, right outside the door!"

"Or somebody could fall off the balcony and plunge headfirst to a gruesome death," Masumi chimed in.

"Or, more realistically, the air conditioning and Wi-Fi for the room might not work," Conan said.

"I expected you to be above silly superstitions like that one," Dr. Agasa said, looking at Conan.

"We're not about to bet our lives on this 'silly superstition', Professor!" Sonoko retorted.

(Author's Note: In Japan, as well as certain other East Asian countries, the number 4 is considered unlucky, since in the Japanese language it's pronounced the same way as the word for death. Some high rise buildings in Japan go straight from the 3rd floor to the 5th floor, so as to avoid that unlucky number. Likewise, the main characters of Detective Conan are aware of the similar unlucky connotations of the number 13 in the West.)

The Professor sighed. "Alright, I'll go see if it isn't too late to have the room number changed."

 **Scene Transition**

To make a long story short, they were able to switch to room...

They stood outside the door, read the room number, and sighed.

"What now?" The Professor asked, tired from the long ferry ride and in a kind of grumpy mood at the moment.

It's right next to that super unlucky room, Conan thought with a deadpan look.

It was Room 412.

"Do you think some of that bad luck will seep in from the next room over?" Masumi asked.

A light went off in Sonoko's head. "Ah! I know!"

"Know what?" Nancy asked.

"The last two times I came here, we ended up staying on the fourth floor," Sonoko said. "So Ayako found a..."

"Can we PLEASE just go inside and finish unpacking everything?!" Dr. Agasa fumed.

He put his card key up to the knob and unlocked the door.

Sonoko looked at Masumi and Nancy. "I'll tell you two about it later."

 **Scene Transition**

The last bin was taken out of the van and set down on the floor in their hotel room.

"Phew," Genta said, wiping his forehead. "Hey Professor, why do you always make me get the heavy stuff?"

That should be obvious, Conan thought with a deadpan look.

To the left upon entering the room was a side space with a bunk bed. The bathroom was to the left a few feet past that; a sink stood outside the bathroom. Beyond that was the main part of the room, with two large beds, a tall wooden stand with drawers and a large TV on top, a small refrigerator with a marbletop kitchen counter above it, a small wooden cabinet standing against the wall in between the two beds, a couch that unfolded to form another bed, and a small table where the Professor promptly put his laptop on. At the end of the room was a sliding glass door leading to the balcony; looking out from the balcony one had a stunning view of the resort grounds and the emerald beaches.

Ayumi emerged from the bathroom in a kiddie swimsuit, and then Mitsuhiko went in.

"I can't wait to feel the cool water and the big waves!" Ayumi declared.

"Oh, right," Dr. Agasa said. "Before you all go out and do your separate things, I think we need to cover some ground rules first."

He walked over to the small table where his laptop was sitting and grabbed the card key.

"I'll have one of these room keys with me at all times," Dr. Agasa said. "When you guys leave, I'll be taking a nap, so I might not answer if you knock on the door. And so, I'll be assigning these now."

Mitsuhiko came out of the bathroom wearing swim trunks. Genta went in.

Dr. Agasa gave cards to Conan, Haibara, Nancy, Sonoko, and Masumi.

"You must never lose these, whatever you do," he said.

"What about us, Professor?" Mitsuhiko protested.

"We were only given six cards," Dr. Agasa said. "Frankly, I'm glad we even got that many. You, Ayumi, Genta, and Shiro will have to either ask somebody with a room key or knock on the door if you want back in here. I'm sorry, but that's just the way it's gonna have to be during our stay here."

Genta came out of the bathroom wearing swim trunks, and Haibara went in.

"Those of you without a room key, do not go swimming unless someone assigned with a key is present or nearby to keep an eye out for you," the Professor said. "And DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT go out into the ocean deeper than shoulder-height. Shiro, I trust you know how to swim?"

"Um, well, I-I'm from Okinawa, aren't I?" he said, chuckling nervously.

"Can you or can you not, kid?" Sonoko pressed.

Shiro sighed. "No," he admitted.

That's strange, Conan thought. I figured the number two of that Organization would at least know how to swim.

"In that case, now is a great opportunity for you to learn," Nancy said enthusiastically. "I'll teach you."

Haibara came out of the bathroom, wearing a kiddie swimsuit like the one Ayumi was wearing. Nancy looked at her and then suddenly seemed kind of downtrodden.

"What?" Haibara asked. "Do I have something on my face?"

"N-no, it's nothing," Nancy said, trying to look cheerful again.

Shiro closed the bathroom door behind him.

Masumi turned to Sonoko. "So, earlier you started to mention something about your sister?"

"Right," Sonoko said. "About two miles out from where you leave the resort grounds there's this place where you can buy good luck charms. Ayako would go there and buy two or three. And I'm telling you: on both trips, after she did that, the weather was perfect for the rest of our time here."

"Ehh? For real?" Masumi said.

"Yeah!"

"So what are we waiting for?" Conan asked.

Sonoko looked at him a bit suspiciously. "You really wanna come with us, kid? On an errand like that?"

Conan nodded. "It'd be a great chance for me to see Tengai-jima village, add a little authenticity to this trip."

Mitsuhiko, Ayumi, Genta, Haibara, Nancy, and Shiro went down to the beach and swimming pool, while Sonoko, Masumi, and Conan went to go buy some good luck charms.

After they all left, the Professor could finally enjoy some peace and quiet, and he wasted no time falling asleep.

 **Scene Transition**

The children plunged eagerly into the indoor pool.

"HEY, Genta-kun, don't swim in the deep end!" Haibara barked.

Shiro took a step into the pool staircase on the shallow end, so that his feet and ankles were wet. He stood there and then sat down, waiting for Nancy to come from across the room and help him learn how to swim.

Nancy was reclining in the folding chair, looking mopey.

"What's wrong?" Haibara asked.

"...It's gonna be something like five years," Nancy said.

"Five years?"

"Before I regain it," Nancy said. "I lost it when I became like this."

"Wait, you don't mean...?"

"My WOMANLY FIGURE!" Nancy shouted, frustrated.

"He probably heard that," Haibara said, uneasy, glancing at Shiro out of the corner of her eye.

"I don't CARE!" Nancy burst out. "Do you have any idea how much dieting and exercise I put into maintaining it?!"

"Hey, come on, you're too old to be acting like this!" Haibara said.

"That's the stinking point!" Nancy said. "I'm not! Just look at me, I'm wearing a child's outfit! I've got nothing here!"

She put her hands on her chest, where as grown-up Ran two certain bulges would've been located.

"You lived the first thirteen to fourteen years of your life without breasts and you can do it again just fine," Haibara said. "Anyway, Higo-kun's waiting for you."

Nancy sighed and stood up.

"Oh, and Ran," Haibara said. "If it's any consolation, don't forget: you're not the only woman here who's going through this. If you ever want to talk, in a more private setting..."

Nancy smiled. "Thank you, Ai-chan."

Feeling a bit better, she walked over to Shiro.

"What on earth were you blabbing about?" Shiro asked. "Oh, my womanly figure!" He scoffed and shook his head.

"Nothing that concerns you," Nancy said. "So, shall we get started?"

 **Scene Transition**

"This is it, huh?"

"Yeah. I came here on both trips to buy some better souvenirs than those available at the resort gift shop."

The building appeared to be made out of wood. It had a thatched roof. A crooked wooden sign that read "Tengai-jima Official Gift Store" in dull red paint was hanging above the door.

"It-it doesn't look all that official to me," Masumi said, somewhat unnerved.

"Don't let the run down exterior fool you," Sonoko said. "This place has it all. Come on, let's go in and get what we came for."

They pulled open the stubborn wooden door and entered the shack.

Inside there were hermit crabs in glass cages, hermit crab food mixtures, shells, sea sponges, canned jars containing shark fins, decorative beach blankets, star fish and sand dollars, and more.

"Amazing," Masumi said in awe.

"Like I said," Sonoko said. "This place has it all."

They went past the front desk and straight to another desk on the left side of the store. The woman sitting behind the counter looked about as old as dirt, and in her advanced age she had evidently shriveled up and shrunk to about the size of a ten year old.

"Well, if it isn't that rich Suzuki girl," the old woman said. "Lemme guess, you're staying up on the fourth floor of the hotel again?"

"W-whoa," Masumi said. "How'd she know?"

"Siily girl, I am a psychic," the woman said in a haughty tone. "My mind is clear of worldly distractions and so I can channel the forces of the spirit world to...!"

"Grandma! Really? You're really gonna use that line again?"

A teenage girl carrying a box of store supplies came into sight.

"Kaori!" Sonoko said in delight.

"Sonoko!" the teenage girl named Kaori responded.

The box was set down for a moment and then they hugged.

"It's been what, three years?" Sonoko asked.

"Two years and 355 days," Kaori said. "So how've you been? Did you bring your friend Ran this time? You know how much I've wanted to meet her."

As soon as Kaori said that, the cheerful atmosphere in the room dissipated.

"...What's wrong?" Kaori asked. "Wait, don't tell me that she...!"

"Yeah, she died," Sonoko said.

There was an awkward pause, made even more awkward by the cheesy Hawaiian music playing on the radio.

"S-so, allow me to introduce you guys," Sonoko said, trying to act upbeat again. "Masumi, brat, this is Kaori Yashihama, a native of Tengai-jima. Kaori, meet Masumi Sera, and the kid with glasses, Conan Edogawa."

Kaori, age 18, had skin that was darker than Sonoko's but not quite as dark as Heiji's. Her hair was black, almost shoulder-length and slightly disheveled. She was wearing a baggy blueish-greenish tie-dye shirt and khaki-colored short shorts. She had a few hardly noticeable freckles on her face.

"So, uh, is your grandmother actually psychic?" Masumi asked.

Kaori laughed. "No, during the tourist season she sets up shop here and sells good-luck charms to tourists, most of whom ended up on the fourth floor and are worried about bad luck ruining their vacation."

"You'd think that the Resort could simply rename the floors so as to not have a fourth," Conan said.

"Well it's a great thing they haven't, young man!" Kaori's grandmother said, laughing. "I've made a small fortune selling these trinkets!"

A quiet ringing of a bell alerted them to the front door opening.

"Ooh, customers!" Kaori's grandmother said. "You three, don't ruin this, got it?"

The two people who entered were tourists. American tourists, a man and a woman, both overweight and wearing ugly Hawaiian shirts. The woman has a camera strapped around her neck. The man was half-bald and he had a pair of sunglasses hanging above his eyes.

" _Ooh, Japanese good luck charms_ ," the woman said in English.

" _They are really expensive though_ ," the man said in English. " _Money doesn't grow on trees._ "

" _But I want one, honey_ ," the woman said.

" _Okay, dear_ ," the man said.

He approached Kaori's grandmother, taking out his wallet.

He bought a wallet and then said, " _Dahmo ehrigatto_."

Then they left. As soon as they were gone...

"Did you see that?" Kaori's grandmother said with a snicker. "I paid ¥500 per piece and those suckers bought one for ¥5000! If only I was such a shrewd businesswoman in my youth."

"Grandmother, since the boss's out today, I guess that means you're in charge," Kaori said. "Can I...?"

"Say no more," Kaori's grandmother said. "As this is the first time in three years that you've gotten to see your mainlander friend, you have my permission to take the rest of the day off. Make it two if you need to."

"Thank you very much!" Kaori said.

She went to the back and clocked out.

The three girls and Conan split the cost and bought one good luck charm, a blue one dedicated to Susanoo, the traditional Japanese god of storms and the sea, and then left to return to the resort.

 **Scene Transition**

It was 8:32 PM when they sat down at their table. They had decided to dine at _Castiglioni's_ , an Italian restaurant on the resort grounds.

The waiter brought them some garlic bread sticks and glasses of water.

"Hey, you don't look Italian!" Genta accused.

"Genta-kun, just because it's an Italian restaurant doesn't mean all the people who work here are Italian," Ayumi said.

"My name is Mizuteru Sakaibara," the waiter said, "and I will be serving this table tonight. Here are some menus, and some coloring materials for the children."

He promptly handed these things out. "I'll be back in about ten minutes, so that you all have time to decide on an order."

"All right, thank you," Dr. Agasa said as the waiter was leaving.

"Um, thanks for paying my meal, Mr. Agasa," Kaori said.

"It's no problem," the Professor answered. "I was recently awarded a lot of money in a lawsuit."

One day, while Haibara was randomly surfing the internet, it came to her attention that a company based in Iwate was selling a product that the Professor had invented and patented. She brought this to his attention, and four months later he walked away with ¥3,000,000 yen, money which he then decided to blow on this present trip to a lavish resort in the Bonin islands, though about a third of it would be saved and put into Haibara's college fund.

Conan sat next to Nancy.

"He's staring at us funny," Conan said, almost in a whisper, referring to Shiro, who was sitting on the other side of the table.

"I think he knows," Nancy said. "That we've been talking about him behind his back. That's never a good feeling."

"Hmm," Conan responded, munching on a breadstick. After he had finished...

"I hear you taught him how to swim?" Conan said.

Nancy sighed. "I tried. But it turns out he's actually kind of afraid of the water."

"Then why the heck did he want to come, if he wasn't going to enjoy himself?" Conan asked.

"He says he wants to try again tomorrow though," Nancy said. "He tries to act stoic, and even a little rude, but...I think he's actually really embarrassed about this, and he really wants to learn how to do it."

There was a pause. Nancy looked at Sonoko and Kaori.

"So you've never met her before?" Conan asked.

Nancy shook her head. "I remember Sonoko talking about her on a few occasions over the years, but that's about it. I didn't even know what she looked like until now."

"I think I do remember, though," Conan said. "There was one time, I think it was three years back, when Sonoko invited you to accompany her and her family on vacation here. You told her that you were too busy. That always struck me as a little odd; I don't really remember you being busy with anything that summer."

"You should know perfectly well why I didn't," Nancy said. "I think we've had a similar conversation before. Then again, you were calling me 'Ran-neechan' at the time."

"It was because her family's wealthy, then?" Conan asked. "You didn't want to take advantage of that fact."

Nancy nodded. "To be honest, though, I always regretted not going. I wanted to meet Kaori too."

"And now she's sitting at the same table as you," Conan said. "But you can't introduce yourself to her as Sonoko's best friend. That's got to be more than a little disappointing."

"Yeah, it kind of is."

"One more thing," Conan said. "On an unrelated note, doesn't something about all this seem...off?"

"What? About this trip? This place?"

"I don't know. But there's something, and I can't really put my finger on it. It's like I've done this before."

"We've been to the beach quite a few times in this past year alone," Nancy said. "Maybe you're just tired of beaches?"

"Maybe. But..."

He was silent and the look on his face suggested he was deep in thought, trying to remember something.

On the other end of the table...

"And then what? And then what?" Kaori asked eagerly.

"W-well, there was kind of a misunderstanding," Sonoko said, evidently super embarrassed and fidgeting with her fingers.

"Misunderstanding?" Masumi said, puzzled. "What did Makoto-san do with your homemade gift?"

"H-he, well, he, uh, well he..." Sonoko stammered, unable to bring herself to say it. And then...

She stood up abruptly. "HE USES IT AS A GROIN CUP!"

This forceful declaration resonated across this fine dining restaurant. At a table across the room, two women regurgitated their food onto their plates. Sonoko sat back down.

"...Wow..." Masumi said, not knowing how to respond.

"Y-you did set the record straight, though, right?" Kaori asked.

"Come on now, how would I even begin to tell him it was a belt?" Sonoko countered.

To relieve her embarrassment she chowed down voraciously on the bread sticks.

"So, I'm definitely glad you decided to come here," Kaori said, "but was seeing me again your only reason? Did that...other thing factor into your decision as well?"

Sonoko grinned, her mouth halfway full. "I wouldn't miss it for a year's supply of these."

"Miss what?" Masumi said. "I'm confused."

"Heeh? You didn't see it on the news?" Sonoko asked.

"I don't read the news often," Masumi said.

"Well, you see..."

Kaori told her.

Masumi stood up. "Say WHAT?! A Kid heist HERE in two days?!"

Shocked, Conan put down the half-eaten breadstick and whipped his flip phone out of his pocket. He goggled it, and he saw the following headline, several days old:

 _CHALLENGE ACCEPTED: Kaito Kid announces his intent to steal "Flaming Rose" gem on display at five-star hotel_

 **To Be Continued**

 **Ending**

(Spirit by Rina Aiuchi)

There are only two kinds of people in this complex world

Those who'll fight for what's precious and everyone else

Sometimes I lay awake at night wondering why this is

Is it perhaps that we believe all hope is already lost?

It takes a lot less effort to tap out and forfeit the prize

Hang our heads in shame and defeat, a prisoner of war

Too many voices have cried out "Awaken, thou that sleepest!"

What we need is soothing balm so these bones may stir again

Come, you and me, together let's put on a show for the ages

Hurry, the curtain rises, the epic drama begins to unfold!

Oh you graceful swan, dancing in the middle of the downpour

All the world's your stage, and every eye is fixed on you

You've got heart, and nobody can ever take that away from you

Give them what they came for, the indomitable human spirit!

 **Next Conan's Hint: Attraction**


	2. Chapter 2

"So, I'm definitely glad you decided to come here," Kaori said, "but was seeing me again your only reason? Did that...other thing factor into your decision as well?"

Sonoko grinned, her mouth halfway full. "I wouldn't miss it for a year's supply of these."

"Miss what?" Masumi said. "I'm confused."

"Heeh? You didn't see it on the news?" Sonoko asked.

"I don't read the news often," Masumi said.

"Well, you see..."

Kaori told her.

Masumi stood up. "Say WHAT?! A Kid heist HERE in two days?!"

Shocked, Conan put down the half-eaten breadstick and whipped his flip phone out of his pocket. He goggled it, and he saw the following headline, several days old:

 _CHALLENGE ACCEPTED: Kaito Kid announces his intent to steal "Flaming Rose" gem on display at five-star hotel_

Intrigued, Conan did some quick research. The gem would be on display at one of the hotel's convention halls on the Lobby Floor, at an event overseen by none other than Jirokichi Suzuki. While it looked like a ruby, the Flaming Rose was cut from pyrrhotite, a mineral comprised from iron sulfide.

In the mid-16th century a Sri Lankan prince presented the gem to the Portuguese crown as an act of tribute. After the Napoleonic invasion of Portugal in the 19th century, it ended up in the hands of the French government, where it remained until the occupation of France by the Nazis during WWII, after which it fell into the hands of a high-ranking SS official, who after the war was hung as a war criminal and all of his assets confiscated by the Allied authorities. For many decades afterwards the status of the gem remained unclear until it was finally put up for auction in 1987. Jirokichi, much younger than he was now, represented the Suzuki family and corporation at the auction in London, where he purchased it for £14,000,000. Today its estimated value stood at roughly $50,000,000 USD.

He then noticed Nancy looking over his shoulder.

"Shoo," he said with annoyance.

"You feeling up to thwarting the Kid again?" Nancy asked with a grin.

She anticipated quite a different answer than the one he gave her then:

"Nah, I'm good just watching this time."

 **Opening**

(Cup of Trembling by B'z)

(Each fresh breath of life is a fresh chance to start anew! A quiet, laid back summer vacation in the tropics; the thrill of a jewel heist! Mix the two together and you get an explosive combination! Perceiving the one and only truth! With the body of a child but the mind of an adult, my name is...DETECTIVE CONAN!)

Above all, I'm afraid of you seeing me like this

The youthful vigor sapped from my bones

Too afraid to proceed, too afraid to turn back

A wretch, recoiling from my own shadow

Wallowing in self-pity like a pig wallowing in its crap

I can't check my phone, lest you might try to call

I can't live at home, lest you might try to visit

All I have left is the clothes on my back and

That dreaded bottle, whose contents I dare not drink

Oh I'm going nowhere, a pinwheel spinning in circles

This Cup of Trembling I now raise to my lips and swallow

So I may face the demons haunting my restless nights

I can't show my face to you until I can call myself a man

Until I've walked a full moon carrying my cross

 **Showdown at the Bell Tree Resort! Part Two!**

 _The analog alarm clock treated her to rude awakening. She looked at the time: the big hand of the clock was on the four and the small hand was on the eight, so did that mean it was...4:40? Did she really wake up that early? Would her mom and dad be upset that her alarm went off at this time?_

 _She got out of bed and looked out the window. It was bright outside. A little too bright. And there's no way it could've been PM; her mom wouldn't let her sleep in that late. Not in a million years._ _She looked at the clock again._

 _That's right, she realized. The small hand tells the hour, the big hand tells the minute, which means the actual time is..._

 _She sighed. If she had a mePod like the kind she often saw on TV, she could just read the time on the screen with the push of a button. There'd be no need for all that fancy math._

 _She changed out of her pajamas and went into the kitchen. Her mom was talking on the landline phone with somebody while preparing lunch, whereas her dad was at work. As usual._

 _Geez, if being mayor means you have to be working this early in the morning, then count me out, she thought._

 _She went in the bathroom, brushed her teeth, and then went to the living room in the hopes of catching something good on TV._

 _Ten minutes, she found herself engrossed in a strange American movie (with poor quality Japanese subtitles at the bottom)._

 _"_ It's over, Anikan, I have the high ground! _"_

 _"_ You underestimate my power! _"_

 _"_ Don't try it! _"_

 _She didn't hear the front door slide open, but she could make out the following conversation:_

 _"Ah, Sakuma-kun!"_

 _"Mrs. Yashihama, is Kaori home?"_

 _"She's in the living room."_

 _"Alright, thanks!"_

 _He scampered into the living room. With the f_ _loor being wooden and all she could hear him coming quite handily. She got up off the floor and muted the TV._

 _"Tatehiko, what is it?" she asked, annoyed._

 _"Kaori, you aren't gonna believe this!" Tatehiko Sakuma said._

 _"What aren't I going to believe?" she asked._

 _"Kids!" he said. "A whole bunch of them!"_

 _"Huuh?"_

 _"There's like forty kids at the hotel right now!"_

 _"They tourists, maybe?" she asked, genuinely intrigued now and hoping to perhaps find somebody else her age to play with. On an island with a permanent population of less than 100 people, the total number of residents under age 18, much less those specifically in Kaori's and Sakuma's age group, was quite small._

 _"I don't know. I just heard about it from Arisa and Tsubasa. I'm going over there now. You wanna come?"_

 _She nodded._

 **Scene Transition**

 _They wandered the grounds freely; as a courtesy to the peoples whose lives were almost completely upended by its presence, any and all of the island's residents were allowed to freely use the indoor and outdoor swimming pool as well as the beach property owned by the Resort._

 _They met up outside, near a large, kind of crowded pool._

 _"You find any kids?" Kaori asked._

 _Sakuma shook his head. "Only a few teenagers. You have any better luck._

 _"No," Kaori said. "Are you sure there's supposed to be...?"_

 _"Hold on! Kaori, look! Right there!"_

 _Kaori turned around and saw it: a boy their age was leaning over the pool. He was wearing red swim trunks and his hair was ruffled. He seemed intently focused on something._

 _"Hey, you!" they shouted, dashing over to where he was._

 _He looked at them rather seriously and stood up. "Stop! Don't touch it!"_

 _"Huh?"_

 _"I worked hard on this. I don't want you messing it up."_

 _"Mess...?" Sakuma began. But then he saw it:_

 _In the pool, on the spot that the boy was leaning over, there were about 20 Japanese 1-yen coins, floating on the surface of the water._

 _"Eeeh?!" Kaori said, truly awed by the sight. "That's amazing! How did you do that?"_

 _The boy grinned. "A true magician never reveals his secrets."_

 _Sakuma scoffed. "What's so special about it? Look, the coins are clearly light enough to float on water. Watch, I'll do it."_

 _He leaned over and snatched one of the coins. Then he dropped it back into the water, just to find that..._

 _"Huuh? It sank!" Kaori said._

 _"I told you not to touch it!" the boy snapped._

 _"Alright, how did you do it?" Sakuma demanded._

 _"Like I said, a true magician never reveals his secrets," the boy said._

 _"There you are!"_

 _A girl their age, who also had ruffled hair, ran up to him. "What are you doing? The next test is about to start!"_

 _He nodded. "Alright, just let me retrieve these first."_

 _"There's no time!" she said, pulling on his arm._

 _He sighed and turned to go._

 _"Wait!" Kaori said. "Just who are you, Mr. Magician? What's your name?"_

 _The boy grinned. "Call me the Kaito."_

 _He grabbed Kaori's hand and kissed it, to the other girl's and Sakuma's dismay and annoyance._

 _"See ya!" he said, and he and the girl raced to the door that led inside._

 _"What was that for?" Sakuma murmured angrily._

 _Kaori repeated his name: "Kaito..."_

 **Scene Transition**

The first day at the beach, as short as it was, had gone without a hitch. When they returned to their room from the restaurant it was 9:56 PM.

There was a general consensus among the group, however, that they weren't tired. Even the Professor, after having gotten that decent nap in, wasn't quite ready to go to bed yet. Luckily for them, Masumi had brought some extra entertainment:

" _Monopoly_ ," Mitsuhiko said, reading the bold English word on the top of the box.

"It's a game that's always been popular in America," Masumi said. "A friend of mine lent this game set to me, so there's a chance it might have a few missing pieces."

"Ooh, Sera-san, did you mean _that_ friend?" Ayumi asked.

"The one you mentioned at the toy store, right before...you know what," Mitsuhiko said. "Am I right?"

"Y-yeah, that's the one," Masumi said. "Like I said then, he's totally into board games and stuff."

So that wasn't just an act? Haibara thought. Is she talking...about my brother? I didn't know he liked board games. Then again, I hardly know anything about him at all.

"So anyways, how do you play?" Sonoko asked.

"You go around the board buying up properties and fine other players when they land on one that you own," Masumi explained. "One player wins whenever all the others have gone bankrupt."

"Buying property, fining people, bankruptcy," Haibara said. "Yup, that's the perfect game for Americans."

"Of course, I'll have to explain the rules as we go," Masumi said. "So who wants to play?"

Everyone except for Conan and Nancy wanted to.

And so, the two of them went over to the bunk bed area where they'd be sleeping. They brought all their stuff over there too.

"Okay, so which do you want?" Conan asked. "Top or bottom?"

"The bottom," Nancy answered. "I'd rather not bump my head on the ceiling first thing when I wake up in the morning."

"Fair enough."

"I just have one question," Nancy said. "In that body, do you wet the bed?"

Huuh? Conan thought. "W-why do you ask?"

"Answer the question, please."

"Of course not!" Conan said indignantly. "Why would you even think that?"

"Well, little kids normally have a harder time holding it in," Nancy said. "I'd prefer to not have it dripping on me."

"You're ridiculous," Conan said. "We've shared a bed before, with me as Conan and you as Ran, remember? I certainly didn't wet the bed then, did I...?"

It was then that he noticed that classic ticked off look on her face.

"Pervert."

Conan opened his mouth to protest, but then he thought back on his first year as Conan and figured he couldn't really argue against that.

"ANYWAY," he said," I don't wet the bed so you have nothing to worry about."

"Just in case, I think I'll take the top," Nancy said.

"Fine! Suit yourself!"

 **Scene Transition**

Two hours later on their side of the room the light was off, but that didn't mean much whenever all the lights were on in the other side of the room and the others were talking rather loudly. Needless to say, neither Conan nor Nancy could sleep under these conditions.

"...Man," Conan said. "Had I known a simple game of Monopoly could drag on for so long I would've just grabbed the board and chunked it off the balcony."

"That's kind of a criminal offence, in case you've forgotten," Nancy said from the top bunk. "On my part, had I known that I wouldn't be getting any sleep anyways I would've just joined them. It sounds like they're having fun in there."

There was a pause.

"Earlier, at dinner, what you did then strikes me as odd, to say the least," Nancy said. "You seriously aren't interested in this Kid heist?"

"It's not that I'm not interested," Conan said. "Remember, the deal I made with the Kid then?"

Nancy thought about it for a moment.

"The one where you agreed not to interfere with his activities any time in the next three months?" she said. "So that's why?"

"Yeah. Three months haven't passed yet, so I guess my hands are tied. Besides, he always returns what he steals, so is it even necessary that he be stopped? Mainly I just do it for the challenge, because I've got nothing better to do."

"But that doesn't apply to us, right?"

"H-Haibara!" Conan said.

"You're all done playing?" Nancy asked.

"I went bankrupt, so I'm out," Haibara said. "As for the rest of them, it shouldn't be too much longer. But like I was asking: Your deal with the Kaito Kid doesn't apply to us, right?"

Conan sighed. "No, I guess not. If you and maybe Ran can figure out what he's planning, then by all means. Just know that I won't be of any help this time. That is to say, you're on your own."

Haibara smirked. "I'm good with that. Considering you figured out the whole thing same time as me during our little contest, it doesn't feel like a real victory over you. Beating the Kid while you're just loafing around should cement my status as your equal. What do you say, Ran? Are you in?"

Nancy sat straight up in bed, a little too fast. She ended up banging her head on the ceiling.

"Ow..." she muttered. "Yeah, I'm in. Let's prevent this jewel robbery."

"Well, if you two are actually going to do this, lemme give you a tiny hint," Conan said. "Do some research on the gem in question, specifically its composition and properties."

"And why's that?" Haibara said. "Don't tell me you've got it figured out already."

"That's all you're getting from me," Conan said smugly, to Haibara's annoyance.

"Hey, Ai-chan," Ayumi called out. "The lights are about to go off."

Haibara nodded. "Alright. Nancy, we'll pick this up first thing in the morning."

 **Scene Transition**

 **The Next Day**

They woke up around 8. Conan, Mitsuhiko, Ayumi, Genta, and Shiro quickly ate breakfast, got ready, and went down to the beach.

" _Oi_ , Shiro!" Conan said with annoyance. "Quit showing off and just send it flying, will ya?"

Shiro kept the beach ball airborne using his knees, legs, and feet.

"Why are you stalling?" Conan demanded.

"I...I'm not sure that I can kick it over the net," Shiro said a bit sheepishly.

"Then just use your hands, like you're supposed to," Conan retorted.

Shiro lost his balance and fell over, and the ball hit the ground.

"0-2," Conan said, more than a little surprised that this world-class soccer star would be so terrible at something as simple as beachball.

Shiro growled. "I'm just getting started."

He hit the ball over the net in what was the start to a heated match.

"...So," Shiro said as the two of them competed fiercely. "One thing I don't get."

"And what's that?"

"The Professor started out giving three of the room keys to the three grown-ups. But then he handed the rest to three specific kids. Why?"

"Probably because he trusted us the most to act responsibly," Conan said. "No offense, but the Professor barely knows you."

"As do any of the rest of you," Shiro said. "Which I guess explains why you're all gossiping about me."

Conan stopped in place and the ball flew past him. "Am not!"

"Don't even try to deny it. To begin with, what did Jodie Starling tell you about me?"

"Well, she told me that you tend to get into mischief and that I should keep a close eye on you when we're together," Conan said.

"And that's all there is?" Shiro said. "You really expect me to believe that?"

"W-well, Haibara thinks you're a cyborg spy from North Korea," Conan said sheepishly.

"Cyborg...spy?" Shiro repeated with a deadpan look.

"GAAH! Why can't I do this?!"

Mitsuhiko was visibly frustrated at his ineptitude in the fine art of building sandcastles. Ayumi was sitting right next to him, making turtle and starfish figures out of sand.

"Mitsuhiko, watch carefully," Conan said.

Conan grabbed the small square castle-shaped bucket/pail/plastic thingy from him. He filled it with sand, evened out the top into a smooth level surface, and then went over to where the crashing waves were. He then proceeded to douse the sand inside the pail so that it was mildly wet. Then he returned to where Mitsuhiko was standing, quickly set the pail upside down on the ground, lifted it, and...

"Amazing!" Ayumi said, who hadn't really been paying attention until she saw the standing sand structure. "Conan, how'd you do that?"

Conan grinned.

Then he looked dumbfounded.

"I don't get it," he muttered.

"Get what?" Mitsuhiko said. "Conan, you got something on the Kid heist?"

"Edogawa-kun! There you are!"

Haibara and Nancy came running.

"Any luck investigating that thing?" Conan asked.

"Hmph, as if we would tell you," Haibara said.

"Nope, we had none," Nancy said candidly.

"Nancy!" Haibara said, grabbing her by the shoulders. "Why would you provide intel to the enemy?"

Who's the enemy here? Conan thought with a deadpan look.

"Oh, yeah, one more thing," Haibara said.

"There's something we thought you might need to see," Nancy said.

"Huh?"

 **Scene Transition**

They led him inside to a large room where hotel staff were busy preparing for an event of some kind. They seemed to be setting up a pedestal in the middle of the room.

"This is it?" Conan asked. "The Convention Hall where the Flaming Rose is going to be put on display tomorrow night."

Haibara nodded. "That's not why we brought you here, though."

"When Ai-chan and I first came across this room, it had a bizarre feel to it," Nancy said. "We were hoping you could tell us why."

A bizarre...feel? Conan thought. "Hold it, didn't I already say you two were on your own if you wanted to stop the Kid?"

And anyhow, he thought, if That Trick is used, I fail to see how it'd give this room any noticeable bizarre qualities. Let's see...nothing appears out of the ordinary to me. Maybe they're just imagining it? But both of them together kind of seems to-

"Ehh? Sera-chan?" Nancy exclaimed. "Are you here to look into the heist too?"

"Something like that," Masumi said.

She looked around. "Hmm, what a great place to hold the event. It's nice and spacy, and the lights can be dimmed and undimmed at a moment's notice. It's only got three entrances/exits, and I'm sure there'll be security to screen everyone who enters, and to cut off any means of escape for the Kid as soon as it's stolen from its spot.

She turned to Conan. "How about you? Any thoughts on this room? Anything...at all? Perhaps something that unexplainedly tugs at the back of your mind, like, say, a feeling of deja vu?"

Huh? he thought.

"Sera-san, you can sense it too?" Haibara asked.

"Aha! That's what it is!" Nancy said. "Deja vu! This set-up...it must be the same as that of some other Kid heist in the past! Jirokichi-san must want to trick the Kid into thinking the security measures are the same as they were then, but really he's got something else up his sleeve!"

Masumi smiled sadly. Well, since you don't remember yet, I guess that's a valid way to interpret it, she thought.

Conan looked at Masumi. What does she know that I don't? he thought. She's figured it out already, hasn't she? Everything the Kid's planning...man, not knowing is driving me bonkers!

Nancy turned to Conan. "By the way, weren't you supposed to be watching the kids and Shiro down at the beach?"

Crap! he thought.

Without saying another word he ran back towards the door leading outside and then towards the beach.

 **Scene Transition**

"And remember," Sonoko said emphatically, mostly directed towards the children. "No screaming or otherwise loud obnoxious behavior. We're all just here to grab some lunch and then we're gonna leave. If you want some candy, grab it now, do not come back for seconds later."

They entered the hospitality suite, which they had virtually unrestricted access to thanks to Sonoko's *ahem* connections. Kaori was with them.

They looked at the cardboard Bento lunch boxes.

"Uh, this one's labeled Atlantic Salmon," Dr. Agasa said. "Any takers?"

"Any boxes with eel?" Genta asked.

There weren't any.

"Uh, then, I guess I'll take the salmon," Genta said.

They got their boxes and then went over to the ice chests to get their drinks.

At that moment a teenage boy entered the room, carrying several bento lunch boxes. He was wearing a resort employee uniform as well as an apron. He had big dorky glasses and short frizzy hair. He set down the bentos on the table and then turned and saw Kaori.

He practically squealed in delight. "Kaori-chan! You came here to visit me at work?"

Here we go again, Kaori thought, annoyed. "Listen you, I'm only here to enjoy some lunch."

He then noticed that she was holding a bento box. "Ehhh? And what's in the box? What's in the box, huh?"

At this point he had actually put his hand on her box and he stuck his face right up to it to read the label.

She yanked it away angrily. "It's beef and rice, okay? Why do you have to be so...?"

"Here, try this one!" he said, holding one of the boxes that he just brought in. "It's got lamb kebabs, fresh off the grill. You'll love it, I guarantee!"

"And you cooked it, I presume?" she said coldly. "No thanks, it'll probably make me sick."

"I prepared all of these lunches," he said. "Well, except for the ones done before 9:00. Midori-sensei cooked those."

"Uhh, I don't mean to interrupt, but Kaori, who is this guy?" Sonoko asked.

Kaori sighed. "Sonoko, Masumi, Professor, meet Sakuma-kun. He works at the Hotel and we've known each other since we were little. Sakuma-kun, this is Sonoko, my mainland friend who I've been telling you about, and these are her friends. Kinda."

"Uh, pardon me, but could I have that lunch with lamb kebabs?" Dr. Agasa asked. "It sounds a lot tastier than the chicken wrap I'm holding now."

Sakuma handed it to him. "So, Kaori, are ya excited about tomorrow night?"

"Is that a trick question?" Kaori retorted.

"Well you should be," Sakuma said with a grin. "Because it's the day that snobbish brat's going down."

"What're you up to?" Kaori demanded.

"You'll see," he said, a super suspicious tone in his voice.

Then he walked away and left the room to get back to work.

When the summer break commenced he said he was going straight home to work on a "special project", she thought. Maybe it had something to do with that attitude just now?

Sonoko smiled mischievously. "It seems like he likes you. Do you like him back?"

"Hmph, that socially stunted computer geek? Not a chance!" Kaori declared.

Besides, she thought, I'm going to meet Him soon. It's been 10 years...I wonder if he'll remember me at all?

 **Scene Transition**

"CANNONBALL!"

Genta jumped into the pool.

When he came to the surface, he was moaning in pain and clutching his stomach.

"Genta-kun, that was a belly flop!" Ayumi said.

"Didn't it hurt?" Mitsuhiko asked.

"N-not at all!" Genta fired back. He laughed haughtily.

A real tough guy, Conan thought with a deadpan look.

"Psst, Conan!"

He turned around. Sonoko was lying in one of those folding beach chairs, clad in a bikini and a pair of sunglasses.

She signaled for him to come closer.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Shh, not so loud!" she said. "The thing is, it's kind of hot out right now."

"So why don't you come swim?" Conan asked.

"I'm trying to get a nice tan, silly," Sonoko said. "I just realized that I never bothered to apply sunscreen back in the room earlier, and I'd like to avoid sunburn. I also don't want to get up and go all the way back to the room."

"There's a thing of sunscreen right over there, right?" Conan said, pointing.

"Yeah, but there's certain parts of my back that I'd have a hard time reaching," Sonoko said.

"So what's the problem?" Conan asked. "There are a ton of big macho guys here who'd probably relish the chance to rub sunscreen on your back."

"I thought of that, but the more I do the more it seems like I'd be acting unfaithful to Makoto-san," she said. "And I don't want to lead some guy on whenever I've already got a boyfriend. That's why I called you. You're just a young brat, right? So I figured I could ask you to do it no problem."

He sighed and went to grab the sunscreen.

Since his partner stopped, Shiro also stopped swimming in the middle of the pool. Having lost that momentum that kept him afloat, he rushed to the pool edge and grabbed onto it.

"...Why'd we stop?" he asked, panting.

Nancy remained in place, treading water, staring at Conan and Sonoko, all the while feeling a wide range of emotions.

"You like him, don't you?" Shiro said. "So why don't you just tell him?"

She turned to face Shiro. "It isn't that simple. I already did, and he told me so too, but there are other factors in play. It's complicated, I'll just say that."

"Hmph, you're both eight years old, right?" Shiro said. "What do you know of complexity?"

"You're eight too, aren't you, Shiro-kun?" Nancy said with a fake naivety.

Tired of treading water, she grabbed onto the edge right next to Shiro.

Masumi and Kaori emerged from the water, wearing goggles.

"Sonoko, are you sure you don't want to swim?" Kaori asked.

"Yeah, the water's great!" Masumi said. "And with these goggles it's like I can see everything down there!"

"Nah, thanks," Sonoko said.

As soon as Conan was finished he jumped back into the pool.

"Here, Conan," Masumi said, handing him a pair of goggles. "Come take a look with us under the water."

Conan nodded enthusiastically. "Okay." He put them on and the three of them submerged.

 **Scene Transition**

Going underwater, opening your eyes and seeing clearly all around you can be a downright surreal experience. The omnipresent nature of the water in which one swam, the concrete barriers to the left and the right and the bottom. The wall of rippling water above, made all the more beautiful by the sun shining into the water. The top was bright, the bottom was dark. What a contrast.

Under the water Masumi held it in her left hand: Her prized possession, a 20 Sen coin, dated to the year Meiji 36 (1903).

She then proceeded to drop it, when Conan and Kaori weren't looking.

A few seconds later, Kaori saw it. She swam downwards to grab it, but Masumi grabbed her arm and held her back. Then, Conan saw it.

He swam downwards, held it in his hand, examined it carefully, and...

Kaori and Masumi returned to the surface.

"What was that down there?" Kaori asked.

"Something for him to find," Masumi said. "That's all I can tell you, sorry."

There was a pause.

"...He's been down there a long time," Haibara said.

"A little too long," Shiro said. "Is this normal for him?"

"No," Nancy said. "No, something's wrong."

Masumi submerged again and swam down to Conan's level.

She looked him in the face, and then she gasped despite being underwater. He was...

He was convulsing, foaming at the mouth. His eyeballs looked pure white. In short, Conan was having a seizure.

She grabbed him tightly and took him up to the surface.

She brought him to shore and began doing chest compressions. By this time everyone had gotten out of the water and gathered around.

Half a minute later, Conan was breathing and responsive.

What's going on, he thought, tired. "Sera-neechan, why are you crying?"

This was a mistake, Masumi thought, teary-eyed. This whole trip was one gigantic mistake. I almost killed him. I almost fricking killed him!

"Shinichi, are you okay?!" Nancy said frantically, grabbing him by the shoulders really tightly.

"Edogawa-kun, how many fingers am I holding up?" Haibara asked.

Even Sonoko looked concerned.

Shinichi? Shiro thought. She called this boy by that name, Shinichi.

Conan grabbed Masumi by the hand and put something in her palm.

It was the 20 Sen coin.

"I remember, at long last," Conan said.

Could it be...?! Masumi thought. Does he finally-

"I gave you this coin," Conan said. "The first time we met, ten years ago. Here, at the Bell Tree Resort."

 **To Be Continued**

 **Ending**

(Spirit by Rina Aiuchi)

There are only two kinds of people in this complex world

Those who'll fight for what's precious and everyone else

Sometimes I lay awake at night wondering why this is

Is it perhaps that we believe all hope is already lost?

It takes a lot less effort to tap out and forfeit the prize

Hang our heads in shame and defeat, a prisoner of war

Too many voices have cried out "Awaken, thou that sleepest!"

What we need is soothing balm so these bones may stir again

Come, you and me, together let's put on a show for the ages

Hurry, the curtain rises, the epic drama begins to unfold!

Oh you graceful swan, dancing in the middle of the downpour

All the world's your stage, and every eye is fixed on you

You've got heart, and nobody can ever take that away from you

Give them what they came for, the indomitable human spirit!


	3. Chapter 3

Kaori and Masumi returned to the surface.

"What was that down there?" Kaori asked.

"Something for him to find," Masumi said. "That's all I can tell you, sorry."

There was a pause.

"...He's been down there a long time," Haibara said.

"A little too long," Shiro said. "Is this normal for him?"

"No," Nancy said. "No, something's wrong."

Masumi submerged again and swam down to Conan's level.

She looked him in the face, and then she gasped despite being underwater. He was...

He was convulsing, foaming at the mouth. His eyeballs looked pure white. In short, Conan was having a seizure.

She grabbed him tightly and took him up to the surface.

She brought him to shore and began doing chest compressions. By this time everyone had gotten out of the water and gathered around.

Half a minute later, Conan was breathing and responsive.

What's going on, he thought, tired. "Sera-neechan, why are you crying?"

This was a mistake, Masumi thought, teary-eyed. This whole trip was one gigantic mistake. I almost killed him. I almost fricking killed him!

"Shinichi, are you okay?!" Nancy said frantically, grabbing him by the shoulders really tightly.

"Edogawa-kun, how many fingers am I holding up?" Haibara asked.

Even Sonoko looked concerned.

Shinichi? Shiro thought. She called this boy by that name, Shinichi.

Conan grabbed Masumi by the hand and put something in her palm.

It was the 20 Sen coin.

"I remember, at long last," Conan said.

Could it be...?! Masumi thought. Does he finally-

"I gave you this coin," Conan said. "The first time we met, ten years ago. Here, at the Bell Tree Resort."

 **Opening**

(Cup of Trembling by B'z)

(Each fresh breath of life is a fresh chance to start anew! A quiet, laid back summer vacation in the tropics; the thrill of a jewel heist! Mix the two together and you get an explosive combination! Perceiving the one and only truth! With the body of a child but the mind of an adult, my name is...DETECTIVE CONAN!)

Above all, I'm afraid of you seeing me like this

The youthful vigor sapped from my bones

Too afraid to proceed, too afraid to turn back

A wretch, recoiling from my own shadow

Wallowing in self-pity like a pig wallowing in its crap

I can't check my phone, lest you might try to call

I can't live at home, lest you might try to visit

All I have left is the clothes on my back and

That dreaded bottle, whose contents I dare not drink

Oh I'm going nowhere, a pinwheel spinning in circles

This Cup of Trembling I now raise to my lips and swallow

So I may face the demons haunting my restless nights

I can't show my face to you until I can call myself a man

Until I've walked a full moon carrying my cross

 **Showdown at the Bell Tree Resort! Part Three!**

Conan sat on the table in the nurse's office. The 60 year old woman in the lab coat stuck her stethoscope onto his bare chest.

"I told you, I'm fine," Conan protested.

"Just stop it," Masumi said, upset. "Stop. You are not 'fine', okay? You had a seizure and you almost died."

"Conan-kun, isn't it?" the woman asked. "Conan-kun, has this ever happened to you before?"

"No. Today was the first time."

"I see. Does anyone in your family have a history of Epileptic episodes?" she asked. "Wait, what am I saying? Why would I expect a little boy to know...?"

"No," Conan said. "To my knowledge, there's no one in my immediate family who's ever had Epilepsy or experienced a seizure. In any case, I'm reasonably certain of what caused it, and I should be okay as long as I stay away from the water or high balconies for the rest of this trip."

"Sorry young man, but self-diagnoses by patients aren't the most..."

"It's okay, doctor," Agasa said. "Like he said, his life shouldn't be in danger, and if further complications arise he can seek treatment at a proper hospital back on the mainland. Not to demean you and your position here, of course."

"Well, alright," the woman said, putting her medical equipment away. "You're free to go."

 **Scene Transition**

Besides the Professor and Masumi, none of them went in there with Conan during the nurse's examination. Instead, they waited outside.

Nancy was fidgeting nervously, tapping her foot rapidly, staring at the door.

"Psst, Mitsuhiko, Ayumi-chan," Genta whispered loudly. "Am I the only one who noticed...it?"

"What Conan said to Sera-san?" Mitsuhiko said. "I think we all did."

"But it doesn't make any sense," Ayumi said. "He isn't even ten years old. So how could he remember something that...?"

"Enough," Haibara said. "Most likely Edogawa-kun was just delirious in the aftermath of That Thing happening to him. He might as well have been talking gibberish."

"Maybe," Genta said. "But, doesn't it seem to you guys like Conan's always keeping some big secret from us?"

"That he's really a thirty year old midget with a shrill voice?" Haibara said sarcastically. "Come on now, what he said then is the last thing you should be concerned about. For all we know, the seizure could be a symptom of some life-threatening medical condition."

"Ai-chan, please don't say that!" Ayumi said. "If Conan-kun dies, then I'll...I'll..."

"KAORI!"

Sakuma came running down the hallway, panting.

"Is it true that a hotel guest went into shock?" he demanded.

Kaori nodded. "He's okay for now, but the nurse's giving him a checkup. They should be done any..."

At that moment the door opened. Conan, Dr. Agasa, and Masumi stepped out into the waiting area.

"What's the word, Professor?" Nancy pressed.

"Everything seems okay," Dr. Agasa said. "But he's gonna have to be examined by neurologists at some point in the near future. For now, I've already informed the Mouris, as well as his *ahem* real parents. As for us, we've still got until the day after tomorrow before it's time to go back home, so let's try to enjoy what time we've got left here."

"But what if it happens again?" Sonoko asked.

"For the remainder of this trip, Conan-kun's is to stay out of the water," the nurse said. "If he has another seizure while submerged...well, let's just say he was extremely lucky this time. He doesn't seem to have suffered any brain damage, but that's not to say he couldn't if this ever happened again."

"But what about showers?" Haibara asked. "Is Edogawa-kun just not going to bathe ever again?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it, I guess," Dr. Agasa said.

"There's no bridge to cross," Conan said. "Because this is not going to happen again. Sera-no-neechan, could I talk to you alone?"

Masumi nodded.

 **Scene Transition**

There was a silence; Masumi was waiting for Conan to say something, anything.

"I'll bet you're wondering," Conan said. "Why am I so confident that another seizure won't happen?"

"And I'll bet you're about to tell me."

"You know, it's funny: eighteen plus years and not so much as heat exhaustion. Then, one day, I swim to the bottom of a pool, find a coin that you must've dropped, and then suddenly my brain goes ballistic. And then suddenly, I remember something that I never remembered before. For starters, the fact that I've been to this resort in the Bonin Islands before. The fact that we've met, on at least one occasion, long ago. How the stinking h**l could I totally forget something like that?"

"You tell me."

"Oh, you know. You see, I believe my memories of then were repressed, and remembering triggered the seizure. I still don't recall much, but...what is clear is that you came here in the hopes of making me remember."

"But, you know," he continued, "this shouldn't surprise me at all. Virtually everything I know about you I had to figure out myself: the fact that you're Shuichi Akai's sister. That you're very well-acquainted with Haibara's brother. That you work for Elena-san. About your...condition. So I guess it's not a big leap to assume you'd keep something like this from me too."

"...Are you mad at me?" Masumi asked, no longer able or willing to maintain her stoic poker face.

"Nah, I always just assume you have some half-decent reason for avoiding full disclosure with me. Furthermore, I know you couldn't have done this: to my knowledge you have no scientific background, much less the resources needed to pull off repressing my memories, and you certainly couldn't have done so as a little kid. No. You know what I think? I think Elena-san did this to me."

"That's right, she did."

Huh? Conan thought. "You flat out told me the truth? Just like that?"

"It was the reason I came, as you said," Masumi said. "I mean, I guess we could've just told you what you needed to know, but Elena-san felt it was best if you remembered first, that which happened ten years ago."

"And what was that?"

"Depends," Masumi said. "How much do you remember?"

"Very little," Conan said. "I do remember being here at this Resort. I remember diving into a pool...that very same pool, in fact, and finding that coin at the bottom. And I remember that later I gave the coin to you. But why? Was it as a...?"

"I'm not saying anything else about that until you remember more," Masumi said.

"If I do remember more, will it come with more seizures?" Conan asked.

Masumi shrugged. "I really have no idea. All I can say to you is: good luck."

 **Scene Transition**

Conan and Masumi returned to where the others were waiting.

After that, they decided to go back to swimming, while Conan opted to just take a stroll on the Resort grounds by himself.

As Conan turned to go, he then felt someone clench his hand.

It was Nancy.

"W-what are you doing?" Conan protested.

"Wherever you go, I'll go," she said.

"That really isn't nec..."

"Hey, somebody needs to stick around in case you have another episode," Nancy said.

"Okay then, but do you have to hold my...?"

He then saw it: this wasn't a laughing matter, something trivial to her. Intense emotion was written all over her face.

She really cared about him. Having been firmly reminded of this fact, he really couldn't help but to blush. He averted his gaze downwards.

"Yes ma'am," he said in a vulnerable childish voice.

 **Scene Transition**

Despite their best efforts, Conan's seizure kind of put a damper on the day for everyone. True to her word, Nancy didn't let go of his hand, except when he needed to use the bathroom. When he took a shower, she stood behind to the shower curtain and continually talked to Conan to make sure that he was all right the whole time.

That night, they both slept in the bottom bunk. Nancy held on to Conan's hand even as they slept.

 **Scene Transition**

 **The Next Day**

*click* *flash*

"...Yup, this one's worth putting on the icebox door!"

Conan opened his eyes.

Haibara was standing there holding the Professor's black camera.

Dang it, Conan thought. I was hoping to wake up and move before the others could spot us. Why didn't the phone alarm go off? Did I set it on vibrate again?

Nancy sat upright suddenly, blushing. "Did you just take a picture of...?!"

"Yup," Haibara said with an uncharacteristically mischievous grin. "It'll make for a cute and memorable trip photo."

Conan practically leapt out of the bed. "Gimme that, right now!"

He attempted to grab the camera from her.

Haibara closed her eyes and donned a fearful look.

Oh no, here we go again, Conan thought, realizing what she was about to say.

"PERV...!"

She was interrupted by a loud knocking at the door.

Haibara answered it. It was Kaori.

"Is Sonoko here?" she asked.

Sonoko came running. "Kaori, what is it?"

"You're Uncle's here. He's waiting in the Lobby now."

 **Scene Transition**

Five minutes later Sonoko, Masumi, Conan, Nancy, Haibara, and Kaori stepped out of the elevator and into the lobby (though half of them were still in their pajamas). Sonoko was wearing a knee length dress with a fish pattern all over it.

"Well, if it isn't me' favorite niece!"

Jirokichi gave Sonoko a bear hug and momentarily lifted her off the ground with his brute strength.

"I trust you'll be present tonight for the special event?" he asked.

"Well duh!" Sonoko said. "If the Kid's there, then I'm there."

"Jirokichi-sama, I brought him!"

Hitoshi Kamiya, Jirokichi's faithful butler, came running. With him was...

"I take it you're Sakuma-kun?" Jirokichi asked.

Sakuma, awed in the presence of this rich and powerful man, immediately bowed. "Y-yes! I am he! I mean, I'm him! I mean...a-anyways, you wanna see it in action?"

"Uncle, see what?" Sonoko asked.

Jirokichi grinned. "Yes, I'd very much like to see it. Sonoko, my dear, come with us and enjoy a sneak peak of the ultimate Suzuki family weapon, the great spider's web that'll ensnare the Kaito Kid at long last!"

He laughed haughtily.

 **Scene Transition**

They were now in the Convention Hall. Jirokichi stuck his hand in his coat pocket and pulled it out:

"No way!" Sonoko said. "You've been keeping THAT on you all this time?"

Jirokichi put the Flaming Rose on the pedestal. Or, more specifically, on the tiny ashtray-shaped thingy on the pedestal. It was small enough and just the right shape that the Flaming Rose fit snugly in it without falling over or whatever.

"I trust you've finished installing it?" Jirokichi asked.

Sakuma nodded. "You want me to turn it on?"

"Please do," Jirokichi said.

Sakuma held in his hand a box-shaped contraption with a red switch on it. He opened the case and flipped the switch. "It should be live...NOW!"

Jirokichi turned to Sonoko. "Alright, me' dear, try to remove that gem from its spot."

Sonoko looked at him suspiciously. "It's gonna zap me, isn't it?"

"N-no! Of course not!" Sakuma said, laughing nervously. "It shouldn't, anyways."

She sighed. "Here goes nothing."

She put her hand on the Flaming Rose and tried to pick it up.

"Huuh?" she said.

She grabbed it with both hands and pulled as hard as she could.

"WHAT THE...?!" she demanded.

She put her legs onto the pedestal and put all of her weight into the task. It still wouldn't budge. But then...

"GAAH!"

She lost her grip and fell over backwards quite violently, where Hitoshi was standing.

They both fell over, with Sonoko being on top of Hitoshi.

Hitoshi took one look at Sonoko and began screaming hysterically until she got up and backed away.

"Good grief, man!" Jirokichi said. "You've never had a pretty girl fall on you?"

"N-no, it's nothing," Hitoshi said sheepishly, standing up. "My most sincere apologies, Sonoko-kun. My behavior was unbecoming of me, to say the least."

Okay...? Sonoko thought, more than a little freaked out.

" _Oji_ - _san_ , how did you do it?" Nancy asked.

"Ah, I know!" Masumi said. "The pedestal has an embedded electromagnet, right? Pyrrhotite is a magnetic material, so it should be possible to effectively seal the Flaming Rose in place with such a thing."

"You've got it," Jirokichi said. "Tonight, the Kid will doubtlessly cut the lights and use the confusion to go after the gem. But, to his utter shock, he won't be able to! I'm a genius, I tell you! A genius!"

It sounds like it could work, Nancy thought. But surely the Kid has done his proper research on the gem he's about to try and steal, right?

"But what if the Kid knows already?" Kaori asked.

"Even if he did, what could he do about it?" Jirokichi retorted.

"Well, that's dependent on a power source, right?" Haibara said. "Couldn't the Kid just knock out all power, including the lights, and then make off like a bandit?"

"We figured as much," Sakuma said with a grin. "That's why the pedestal's hooked to a separate power source, a gas-powered generator directly above this room. The cables go up through the ceiling, into the walls, down to the floor, and into the pedestal. We designed it in such a way that it the cables won't be visible to the guests, or something that can be tampered with unless you were to make a big hole somewhere in this room. That pedestal took a whole week to install."

"So the Flaming Rose is just gonna sit on the pedestal the whole time?" Conan asked. "Won't the onlookers think you just glued it on or something? What if the Kaito Kid thinks that too? At that point you'd be effectively cheating, the way he saw it, so he might not even make an appearance."

"Ah, but nobody's gonna think that," Jirokichi said. "Because I'm gonna hold the gem in my hand for everyone to see. It'll work like this: attending the event will be a group of 7 close associates of mine. Beforehand we're going to play a brief game of cards. The one of us who gets the Ace of Spades will be 'it'. That person, whose identity will remain a secret to the rest of us, will contact Hitoshi-kun in private and show him the Ace of Spades that they have. Then, that person will come up with a password, which he or she will tell only to Hitoshi-kun."

"Whenever it's time for Jirokichi-sama to hold the Flaming Rose up for the crowd to see, that person will contact me via a two-way radio and tell me the password, after which they'll order me to momentarily deactivate the electromagnetic field. After Jirokichi-sama puts it back in place, I'll be ordered to reactivate the field by that person."

I see, Haibara thought. So even if the Kid sneaks in with the group of 8 ahead of time, there's no guarantee that he'll be that person who's picked. If he sneaks in afterwards, he wouldn't know which person to assume the identity of. Even if he does know this, he wouldn't know the password.

 **Scene Transition**

 **That Night**

If nothing else, the event had high turnout. The Convention Hall began admitting guests at 6:00 PM. The Flaming Rose was kept on display on a pedestal, while there was also a banquet meal for guests.

Most of the viewers were shocked by the fact that there was no heavy security in place surrounding the gem; while there were on-duty police officers from the mainland (in all policing matters the Ogasawara/Bonin Islands fall under the jurisdiction of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department) stationed at all the entrances/exits of the Convention Hall, anybody could just walk up to the gem and, in theory, snatch it from its spot and run off. It seemed surreal that the general public had such close-up unrestricted access to this ancient treasure.

Ayumi stood on her tiptoes but even then she couldn't quite reach the yakisoba. Then, Genta grabbed her and lifted her up. She thanked him and filled her plate.

About 10 seconds after Haibara sat down with her plate, that person sat down next to her.

She immediately and suddenly felt very uncomfortable, but it wouldn't have looked good if she got up and sat somewhere else.

"...I've been meaning to talk to you for quite some time," Shiro said. "I just didn't know how to do approach you before."

"What is it?" she demanded, trying to sound calm and collected.

She could then see that he was holding a sharp kitchen knife in his hand. Most likely he took it from the banquet tables.

But what was his move? Did he intend on threatening her here? In very this crowded place, where she could easily scream for help? After that, his evil intent would be fully known to the FBI and CIA. Did he simply not care about that at this point? Was he hoping for an extraction by his people? If so, how on earth did they manage to find him? Surely the layers of secrecy inherent in the Witness Relocation Program weren't so easily penetrated, not in such a short time, not even by the...

She was so caught up in her perception of him being a dire and immediate threat that what happened next totally threw her off guard:

Shiro sliced into the palm of his own hand, in a single downward motion, with only a slight grimace. Then he showed her his hand.

"See?" he said. "I bleed blood, just like you. I'm a human, not a cyborg."

She then remembered what her cover story was, and by extension what Shiro must've thought was going on.

"Eeeehhh?!" she exclaimed in a fake childish voice, studying his hand closely. "It's true!"

There was a pause.

"If you're really a human, then that must've hurt," Haibara said. "I'm sorry."

"Hmph, you've got nothing to apologize for, kid," Shiro said. "Up until now, I've done nothing to prove to anyone that I'm a good, trustworthy person. And frankly, I was never that to begin with."

Why's he saying this to me...? Haibara wondered, her heart racing.

"But, recent events have taught me that no matter what kind of person I was yesterday, I can choose to do the right thing today," Shiro continued. "If I want others to trust me, I'm going to have to be different from who I was, and I'm going to have to work hard towards being different, because a man's nature isn't so easily changed. I'm going to work hard to earn your trust, and that of the other people who I hope to eventually call my friends. So...consider this offering of my blood as a starting point."

"Uh, what are you two talking about?" Mitsuhiko, who had just sat down ten seconds ago, asked.

"If you'll please excuse me, I need to use the toilet!" Haibara said, a deeply conflicted and uncertain look on her face.

She stood up and ran off, leaving her dinner plate behind.

"I wonder what's going on with her," Mitsuhiko said. "Oh, Shiro, you're bleeding! Let me go ask someone for a...!"

"No, I'm fine," Shiro said.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I feel better now than I have in a while."

 **Scene Transition**

Masumi approached Conan, who was seated next to Sonoko and Nancy. In her hand she held a sheet of paper.

"Can I have a minute of your time?" she asked.

Conan stood up. "Sure."

They went to another table at the opposite end of the room, where it was considerably quieter.

He took a seat, and she sat right next to him.

"I guess this'll have to do," she said. "For a full recreation I suspect we'd have to pay an exorbitant fund just to rent out this place for a half hour, and teenagers aren't exactly the most loaded of people."

"That paper," Conan said. "It's the test from 10 years ago, isn't it?"

"Just like it says on the tin," Masumi said, putting it down right in front of him.

On the top it read:

YOUNG SHERLOCK SCHOLARSHIP CONTEST

Deductive Reasoning Aptitude Test, B

*original date of test*

It didn't have any pencil markings on it, and the paper was nice and neat, meaning this was a fresh copy of the original typed up test.

"You got B, right?" Masumi asked.

Conan thought about it for a moment. "Uh, no, I thought I got E. But the questions are the same, so...maybe I'm wrong?"

"Nah, I just wanted to see if you remembered," Masumi said. "This is E."

"So what, you just want me to take it again?" Conan asked. "To see how much better I am now?"

"Fill it out however you want," Masumi said. "No one's judging."

She gave him a pencil.

He immediately noticed that the pencil had a peculiar smell. He sniffed it.

The olfactory system can serve as a scary effective trigger of old forgotten memories, Masumi thought. Those pencils were scented for good reason, it seems.

Conan held the pencil in his right hand and began writing furiously.

Five minutes later, he handed it to Masumi.

"Done."

Masumi looked over it:

A few of the answers are wrong, she thought. Like, how on earth could Shinichi Kudo be duped like this? Maybe because he went through it too fast and didn't carefully read through each...wait, no, I get it! Those answers must be what he put down the first time. If that's the case, then by my rubric, and surely Elena-san's, he passed this with flying colors.

She held his finished test and took the scented pencil back. "I'll be back later."

"You aren't interested in the heist?" Conan asked.

"Something more important came up," she said.

 **Scene Transition**

Conan, Nancy, and Haibara stood near the doorway.

"You looked upset earlier," Nancy said to Haibara. "Something wrong?"

Haibara shook her head. "No, I've just got a lot to think about. So anyways, isn't it about time that *he* showed up?"

"It could be any minute now," Conan said.

At this moment, most of the attendees were at their tables. There was just one old man standing near the pedestal.

And then, the lights went out.

A few seconds after that, the explosion.

 **Scene Transition**

"...Yup, the results are exactly the same," Elena Miyano said. "Even the handwriting's the same, from the pictures you sent me."

Masumi stood in the elevator room. "So, what's on the sixth floor?"

"A surprise. That's all I'll say until you..."

 **KABOOM!**

"What was that?" Elena demanded.

"I'll have to call you back later! Bye!" Masumi said, hanging up.

Please don't tell me that came from the Convention Hall! she thought, subconsciously pleading with some higher power as she ran towards the sound.

 **Scene Transition**

Fortunately, it was a very weak explosion (more like a firecracker, really), and thanks to the dry fireproof flooring material nothing caught aflame.

Regardless, by this time people were practically trampling over each other to escape the large pitch-black room.

Since it was dark, hardly anyone noticed those few people who were headed *right towards* the scene of the blast.

"This is the Kid's doing, right?" Nancy said.

"I don't know," Haibara said. "This seems to be taking it a bit too far, even for the Kid."

They took their phones out to provide light in the darkness. Conan flashed his on the pedestal, and:

It was gone. The Flaming Rose was not there.

There was, however, an old man rolling in agony on the floor.

" _Ojisan_ , are you alright?!" Nancy asked.

Haibara checked him thoroughly. "I can't see or feel any wounds on him."

"My...heart," the man groaned.

Then Conan realized what was going on. "Mister, do you have a pacemaker?"

"Y-yeah," the man said. "I've had one for the past five years, and I've never had no trouble with it 'till now. My phone, please, take it. It's in my left pocket. Call my wife and tell her that I..."

"Mister, stay with us!" Haibara said.

Nancy took the phone out of the man's pocket. But to her surprise, it was completely dead.

"As I figured," Conan said.

"Conan, you know what this is?" Nancy asked.

Conan nodded. "Most likely, this was the work of a flux compression generator."

"A what?" Haibara asked.

"A flux compression generator is a primitive means of producing an electromagnetic pulse," Masumi, who had just arrived at the scene, said. "It requires an explosion, like the kind that you guys just witnessed. Any electronic device in close proximity to the blast, including the wires in the pedestal and this man's pacemaker, would be completely fried."

"Quick, help me perform CPR on him!" Haibara said, struggling to remove the man's shirt.

Kaori and Sakuma arrived at the scene and helped do chest compressions. Fortunately for them, under accepted medical guidelines mouth-to-mouth resuscitation was not necessary.

They had managed to stabilize the man just as Jirokichi and Hitoshi came running.

Hitoshi ran straight towards the direction of the pedestal.

"Hitoshi-kun, enough with that!" Jirokichi barked. "This man's life is more important!"

Hitoshi complied.

"Sakuma-kun, is there a defibrillator anywhere on the island we could use?" Hitoshi pressed.

"Y-yeah, there's one in the Nurse's Office," Sakuma said.

"Can you take us there?" Jirokichi said urgently.

 **Scene Transition**

The patient entered the Nurse's Office and the door was shut behind them.

Conan, Nancy, Haibara, Masumi, Sonoko, Shiro, Dr. Agasa, the Detective Boys, Kaori, Sakuma, Hitoshi, and Jirokichi waited outside.

"I hope that man's going to be alright," Ayumi said.

"Professor, what was wrong with the old man anyway?" Mitsuhiko asked.

"As far as I can tell, Arrhythmia," the Professor said.

"Arithmetic?" Genta said dumbly.

"Arrhythmia is when the heart fails to produce a normal and healthy beat," Haibara said. "Like, say, for instance, a man's been sitting down all day and yet his heartbeat remains as fast as if he had been running; that's one example of arrhythmia. Likewise, his heartbeat might be too slow for him to sustain a normal lifestyle. Pacemakers are designed to help with this. In some people a malfunctioning pacemaker may simply lower the quality of life; in others, it can prove fatal. In this case it would seem to be the latter."

Kaori tapped Hitoshi on the shoulder. "Hey, may I speak to you alone?"

Hitoshi nodded. "Sure, we'll take it outside."

As they were leaving, Conan began to follow.

 **Scene Transition**

They stood next to the outdoor swimming pool. It was dark, pitch black if not for the full moon shining overhead. The pool was lit up by an internal glow of alternating colors; red, blue, green, yellow, white, and repeat.

"Is there something you need from me, miss?" Hitoshi asked.

Instead of answering straight away, she paced back and forth along the poolside for a few seconds. She sighed.

"Wow, this is the first time in what, ten years?" she said.

"Pardon?"

"It was beside this very pool," Kaori said. "You showed me that trick. I thought it was just about the coolest thing I've ever seen; to this day I haven't been able to figure it out."

At this point neither one of them noticed Conan watching nearby.

"You and I have met before?" Hitoshi asked. "I'm afraid I don't remember that at all."

She scoffed. "No need to be bashful. We're all alone here. You need a refresher, no? Alright. The first thing you should know is that I've studied everything about the Kaito Kid known to the general public. I even know a few things not known by the general public."

"Such as?"

"Such as that his real name is Kaito Kuroba, a student at Ekoda High, Class 2-B," Kaori said. "He's of genius-level intellect and he has a childhood friend named Aoko."

"...Why are you telling me this?" Hitoshi asked. "You should've gone straight to Jirokichi-sama with what you know. Japan's most elusive thief could be put behind bars with your testimony."

"I wanted to see you in person before making any such move," Kaori said. "Another thing that I know about the Kid: he would never do anything to hurt another soul. That he would set off an EM Pulse and risk screwing with someone's pacemaker is out of character, to say the least."

"Furthermore," she continued, "the Kid always does his reconnaissance work ahead of time. I figured surely he would know that Hitoshi Kamiya, Jirokichi-san's butler, was the one who'd be operating the circuitry embedded in the pedestal. Assuming his identity would be the ideal way to bypass Jirokichi-san's elaborate security measures, after all. So, then, here's what I think happened: that old man, he was your accomplice. The cardiac arrest was fake, the EM Pulse was fake. It was a harmless firecracker, and he set it off. Whenever you entered, I noticed that you went straight for the pedestal; the reason, I presume, would be to pick up the Flaming Rose off the ground, after it had been blown off the pedestal by the miniature explosion. As we speak, your accomplice is probably tranquilizing the nurse and escaping out the window. Now, after I've gone through all this trouble to figure you out, it's your turn: tell me, am I wrong?"

Hitoshi/Kaito smirked and began strolling along the poolside nonchalantly. Kaori followed after him.

He held the gem up to the moonlight. "...Nope, this isn't the one I've been looking for. It sure is pretty though. Oh, and no, everything you've said so far has been spot on. Except for one thing: you say we've met before?"

"H*ll yeah!" Kaori said. "You did that thing where you made the coins float on the water! You really don't remember?"

"Sorry, but I don't have a clue what you're talking about," Kaito said. "Furthermore, if I had ever visited this island, much less this Hotel, I think I would've remembered."

But it all does seem kind of familiar, to be honest, he thought, a bit perplexed.

Kaito then saw it: tears were beginning to stream down Kaori's face.

Oh crap, he thought. I just made a lady cry. And I'm not even sure what for.

"I spent..." she stammered, not looking up, "I spent the last ten years looking for you, you big DUMMY!"

She ran off and began sobbing.

"Wait," Kaito started to say, to no avail.

It was then that he saw Conan standing a few feet away.

"I thought we agreed you wouldn't interfere with my heists," Kaito said.

"Oh, we did," Conan said. "Tonight I'm just a spectator. But..."

"But what?"

"The same can't be said about these two," Conan said with a deadpan look.

It turns out that Nancy and Haibara had followed him.

"We've got you at last, Kaito Kid!" Nancy said.

"You're not getting away this time," Haibara said.

"How'd you know it was me?" Kaito asked.

"We figured Edogawa-kun would be interested in whatever you were doing," Haibara said.

Kaito Kid grinned. "My hat off to you, then. But what now? Am I really supposed to believe that two little girls are gonna bring me down?"

"I dunno," Haibara said, activating the Power-Enhancing Kick Shoes. "Let's FIND OUT!"

She pushed the button on her belt and a soccer ball came out. She kicked it at the Kid, ripping apart his face mask and sending him flying into the pool.

"HEY! OVER HERE!" Nancy shouted at the top of her lungs. "The Kaito Kid's over here!"

And with that, the Kaito Kid hurriedly got out of the water and made a run for it, shedding the remnants of his disguise as four burly police officers chased after him.

"I'll return this LATER!" he called out as he ran towards the beaches.

 **Scene Transition**

An hour later, they had returned to their room. Jirokichi took a chopper back to the mainland, and the Kid apparently had once again evaded capture.

Conan sat up in bed, deep in thought.

From the top bunk, Nancy poked her head down and looked at Conan. "Something's on your mind. Spill it."

"Something about what she said then," Conan mumbled. "To the Kid. Why's it seem so familiar?"

"Conan, what's familiar?" Nancy asked.

At that moment Masumi opened the door and stepped inside the room. She looked at Conan.

"Come."

Conan stood up. "Where to?"

"The sixth floor."

 **Ending**

(Spirit by Rina Aiuchi)

There are only two kinds of people in this complex world

Those who'll fight for what's precious and everyone else

Sometimes I lay awake at night wondering why this is

Is it perhaps that we believe all hope is already lost?

It takes a lot less effort to tap out and forfeit the prize

Hang our heads in shame and defeat, a prisoner of war

Too many voices have cried out "Awaken, thou that sleepest!"

What we need is soothing balm so these bones may stir again

Come, you and me, together let's put on a show for the ages

Hurry, the curtain rises, the epic drama begins to unfold!

Oh you graceful swan, dancing in the middle of the downpour

All the world's your stage, and every eye is fixed on you

You've got heart, and nobody can ever take that away from you

Give them what they came for, the indomitable human spirit!

The elevator door closed. Masumi pushed the button for the sixth floor.

"...So, what's on the sixth floor?" Conan asked.

"A surprise," Masumi said.

Conan looked at her funnily.

"No, really, that's the answer that Elena-san..."

The door opened. Standing there was Subaru Okiya, AKA Shuichi Akai.

Startled, Masumi took a step back. "Big Brother...what the heck are you doing here?"

He smiled. "Shinichi Kudo, in case you haven't realized it by now, there's a sizable omission in your memories. Elena-san has decided that the time has come to make you whole again. Are you ready?"

Conan hesitated. He looked at Masumi and then back at Akai.

"Yeah, I'm ready."

He stepped out of the elevator and followed the FBI agent to the place where ultimate truth awaited.

 **End of Episode**

 **To Be Continued**


End file.
